Animal trap



Oct. 8, '1940.

J. u. LEHN 2,216,919

ANIMAL TRAP Filed July 20, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet l Z 5 T a a: 15 1 7a 19 ga 5 i: f a r i i y i W -72 8 1 l I n Z4 J0 16 I 25 22 21 ATTORNEY Oct. 8, 1940. J. u. LEHN 2,216,919

ANIMAL TRAP 7 Filed July 20, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEY Patented oces, 1940 V h 2 215 919- STAT ES PATENT- OFFICE I g i 2,216,919

. V ANIMAL TRAP v John UQLehn, Lititz, Pa, assignor to Animal Trap l 7 Company of America, Lititz, Pa., a corporation oflennsylvania j ApplioationJulyZfl, 193m No.2 85,469 9 Claims. (01. 43-90) My invention consists in the novel features form of delayed action means embodied therein, M

hereinafterzdescribed reference beingghad to the the parts being shown in set position.

accompanying drawings which illustrate :several Fig. '7is aside elevation of the trap as shown embodimentsof thee-same, selected byme forpurin Fig. 6. 1 l l poses of illustration, and the said invention is Fig. 8 isa side elevation of the trap showing the 5,

fully ldisclosed in the following description and jawsin" closed or sprungposition and the guard claims..- i held by the delayed action'means.

My invention relates to animal traps such as Fig. 9 is a detail'perspective view of the delayed are :usedzintrapping musltrats and 'otheranima'ls, action plate shownin' Figs. 6, 7 and 8.

1-0 which'are providedy inaddition tolthe usual spring Fig. 10 is a detail perspective view of a slightly 1.0

actuated jaws, with a 'leg embracing "guard such modified form of delayed-action means, as is illustratedpdescribed and claimed in my In the embodiment of my invention shownin former Letters Patent of the United States, No. Fi-gs.'1 to 4; inclusive,-|'represents the base'having 1,912,457,;granted June 16., 1933, for the purpose of upturned portionsl, provided with pivotal apersliding up the ice: 0f theanimal caught in the tures to receivelthe pivot portions 3a, 3a ofthe i5.

jawsand .engagin g' the rbody :of :the animal so as "jaws3, 3. 4 represents the cross provided with topushrit awayfrorn' theziawsltopreventitheanithe pivoted latch 6, pivotally supported .at 5 at mal f rom wringingiofif,fasitris termed, by *breakthe outer endof the cross; :The cross is provided ing the imprisoned leg, ;or gnawing it off and-so with the usual upwardly bent portion to which the making its escape. pan 1 carrying-the detentilw is pivoted." 8 repre- 20 My invention has for "its object the provision sents the jump springconnec'ted at one end to the of "means for :delaying ,the complete release of base I by rivets 8'a.-or otherwise "and provided the guard whenthetrapis-sprung until after the atits outer'endwith an aperture 9 surrounding jawshave closed firmly upon the leg of the anione of the upturnedportion's '2 of the base, the mal and thelstrugglesofthe animalhavedragged edges of the aperture 9 engagingthe adjacentends 25 the trap away from lits anchoring 'means and has of the jaws and closing them in thereleased posiplaced such tension on the chain or other flexible tion of the trap. I I 1 connection connecting it thereto as to disengage The base is alsotprovided' in this instance with the "delayed action means "and free the guard, an auxiliary cross piece,-secured-to the baseand 3 0, whichthenoperates-imthe usualmanner. In-case having upturned end portions Illa perforated'to the jawsare'sprung by a ,foreignobject'coming in receive a pivotshaft l t for the guard .l 2, the arms contact with the pan, the guard will remain inthe of which are spaced laterally a distance greater I partially; position, which will indicate to thanthe width of the springiand have their ends the trapper the cause of the sprung trap. provided with eyesl3to engage ithepivot shaftl I.

' 35, In'the accompanying drawingsni have-shown Aooiled spring preferably surrounds the pivot 5,

my invention embodied-in a'trappf the jump type, shaft I I and has one end engaging the cross piece in which-a single arm leatspring isempl'oyed to In and .the'otherend l5;connec,ted with an arm actuate-thewjaiws, andalsoin'a longspring trap in of thegu'ard, so as to'move it in the direction of W i bent a s n hav ng upper and lower the arrows Figs. 2; 3.: l

40 e e r d "q To set the trap the guardiisswung over until 40 i In -the'said drawings: t it is parallel with the-spring, the spring 8 is de- Fig. 1 is a plan view of aljump type trapyempressed and the jaws are folded down into the bodying my invention, the 'gparts being shown in positions-shown in Fig.4, :uponthe guard and.

set position U 7 spring, and thelatch-6 is engaged with the de- 45, 1-" i g.,2 isa side elevation of the map as shown in tent 1a ofthe-pan. i l I i Fig. 1. i l 1 To effect the delayed action of the guard I have I Fig.3 is aside elevationof the trapshowing the shown a delayed action' bar I 1, illustrated in dejaws released or sprung and the guard held by tail in Fig. 4, havinganattaching eye l8 at one the delayed action means, before its final release. end and a'downwardly bent stop or projection I 9 Fig.4 isa perspectiveview of the delayed action at the other. The trap is/provided with a flexible 5 0 k i connection, preferably a chain 2|, one end of 5 is aa r pe t v v w of a porti n of whichispermanently connected to the base 1, the jump spring andguard" showing a modified for example; by-an eye22 riveted at 23 to the upform of :delayed action "means. turned portion 2, adjacentto the free ends of the 5 5 Fig-6 "is a long springwtrap having a modified spring 8 andgua-rd' I2, and the eye [8 of the bar 5 5;

IT is secured to an intermediate portion of the chain or connection 2 I, leaving a small amount of slack, indicated at 2Ia, between the bar I! and the eye 22. This prevents the possibility of the bar I! becoming disassociated from the trap and lost or mislaid, and also provides clearance for withdrawing the bar from between the guard and the spring before the chain is drawntaut. When the trap is fullyset the,delayed' action bar I1 is inserted between the guard I2 and the spring 8 as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the parts being so constructed that it will be held frictionally between the guard and spring, so that it will not be with-j drawn by the weight of the trap. This permits of the trap being carried by the chain 2| while fully set, to the place, as the runway of the animal, where it is to be placed, and to be placed therein by means of the chain. The outer end of the chain or connection 2| will be provided with the usual anchoring pin or ring, or both, as maybe desired.

When the trap is sprung by an animal depressing the pan 7 and releasing the pivoted latch the spring 8 will rise and close the jaws on the leg of the animal. The guard being also released it will rise with the spring 8, transmitting the force of its spring I4 through the delayed action'bar II to the force of spring 8 in effecting the closing of the jaws, and holding the bar I'I firmly clamped between the guard and spring 8, until both are arrested by the engagement of the sides of the aperture 9, with the sides of the adjacent portions of the jaws 3, 3, as clearly shown in Fig. 3. This is especially advantageous when the trap is set under water as is oftenthe-case in muskrat trapping particularly, as the water retards the action of the trap so that the increased spring tension helps to overcome this slowing of the jaws. Under these conditions, also, a little time is required before the jaws take a firm hold on the animals leg which is more or less slippery when wet. If the guard -releases immediately after the snapping of the jaws, the tension of its spring sometimes aids the animal in its attempts to escape before the jaws of the trap are sufliciently set on its leg.

The trap is thus held in this partially released position until the struggles of the animal pull the chain taut and exert sufficient tension on it to withdraw the bar II from between the spring 8 and the guard when the guard is instantly released and functions in the usual manner. This is more easily done in the partially released position of the guard than in the completely set position, since the guard spring exerts less tension upon the bar than when the trap is fully set.

In Fig. 5 I have shown a slightly modified construction in which I employ'a spring hairpin clip I'Ia formed of a strip of metal-bent to form two parallel arms which embrace the guard and spring between them. The clip is provided with an eye IBa at the central portion of the strip, to receive an intermediate link of the chain 2 Ia and I may also, if desired, provide opposite portions of the arms of the clip with outwardly bent portions III) to engage'one (or both) arms of the guard, as clearlyshown in Fig. 5, and hold the clip in place so that the trap can be carriedby the chain when fully set, and drawnv to the de- 1 sired position on the ground, by -means of the chain. The operation of this embodiment of my invention will be exactly'as previously described, the clip holding the guard and spring together and adding the efliciency of the guard spring to the jaw spring 8 until the spring 8 is arrested by the jaws, and delaying the action of the guard until the struggles of the animal detach the clip and permit the guard to function in preventing wring offs.

In Figs. 6, '7, 8 and 9, in which the parts corresponding to those previously described are given the same reference numerals with the addition of 100, I have shown my invention. embodied in a long springtrap, in iwhich the jaws are actuated by a bent flat spring I88 having two arms each of which is provided at its end with an aperture. The aperture I89 in the lower arm surrounds one of the bent up portions I02 of the base I8I, and the aperture I09 in the upper arm encloses the, adjacent portions of the jaws I03, I83. The jaws and guard may obviously be held in set position by a latch pivoted to the usual cross, and engaging a detent on the pivoted pan, as in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, but in this instance I have shown the base IIiI provided with a cross piece I84 carrying a pivoted bail IIIB, engaging apertures in the upturned ends of the cross piece and engaging a detent III'Ia on the pan I 01 which is pivotally connected with the base. The guard H2 is mounted on a pivot shaft III engaging other upturned portions of the same (or another) cross piece and provided with the actuatingspring II4.

In this embodiment the delayed action means comprises a detent lever I25 pivotally supported at one end as at I26 in any desired manner, as by forming two adjacent apertures in the upper spring arm before tempering and bending a portion of the detent arm therethrough to form an eye, as shown. This detent lever is adapted to extend over the outer end of the guard, in the set position of the trap and to have its outer end engaged by an aperture IZ'I in a slide I28 consisting of a plate having a sliding engagement with the upper spring arm. This plate is placed in engagement with the spring when the trap is assembled and cannot become detached therefrom. The detent lever is preferably-formed of material having sufficient resilience so that when pressed down over the outer end of the guard, and engaged by the slide I28, it will press upwardly on the slide and createsuflicient friction between the slide and the lower surface of the upper spring arm to permit the trap to be carried by the chain I2I or other anchoring connection, which in this instance is attached directly to the slide.

When the trap is sprung the jaws will be closed under the combined force of the jaw spring I08 and the guard spring H4 and the guard will be arrested in the partially released position by the detent lever I25, as shown in Fig. 8, until the struggles of the animal cause the slide to be pulled along the upper spring arm far enough to release the detent lever, which will instantly swing upward, and release the guard which then functions in the usual manner.

In some instances, instead of using the chain attaching slide just described, I may secure the detent lever to the upper spring arm by means of a clip similar to that shown in Fig. 5, as illustratedin Fig. 10. As shown in the latter figure, the detent lever I25a which in this instance pivotally engages a collar I88a, surrounding the upper spring arm, is held in set position by the clip I28a of the hairpin type, one arm of which en-' gages the detent lever I25a and may be provided with an outwardly curved portion, as at I28b, to fit over said lever. The clip has an eye I280 engaging an intermediate link I82a of the chain I2I which in this construction will be secured at its inner end to the trap. For example, it may be secured by an eye bolt riveted to the base in the manner shown in Figs. 1, 2, '3, or extending through an aperture in the curved portion of the spring I08, or to a plate slipped over the spring similar to that shown in Fig. 9. A. suflicient amount of slack will of course be provided between the connection of the chain with the trap, and its connection with the clip, to insure the clip being disengaged from the detent lever when the trap is moved by the trapped animal to draw the chain taut.

The indirect method of securing the guard to the spring so as to delay its complete action holds the guard securely yet allows it to become disengaged from the delayed action means with a minimum of force exerted by the animal in its struggles.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: s l

1. A trap having gripping means and a pivoted leg embracing guard, and spring actuating means therefor, locking means releasable by the animal for holding the jaws and guard in set position and releasing both when the trap is sprung, an anchoring connection for the trap, and delayed action means for arresting the guard in partially released position when the trap is sprung, operatively connected with said anchoring connection and constructed to fully release the guard by tension-of the anchoring connection produced by the struggles of the animal caught in said jaws.

2. A trap. having gripping means and a springactuated leg embracing guard, locking. means releasable by the animal for holding said gripping means and guard in set position and releasing both when the trap is sprung, an anchoring connection for said trap, and separate holding means for said guard operatively connected with said anchoring connection and held in operative position by frictional engagement withsaid guard in the set position of the trap, to permit the trap to be carried in fully set positionby said anchoring connection, said holding means preventing complete releaseof the guard when the trap is sprung,

and adapted to be disengaged from the guard by the struggles of the .animal to fully release the guard after the frictional tension is reduced by the partial release of the guard spring.

3. A. trap having opposed jaws, ,a spring for closing said jaws, a pivoted leg embracing guard, a separate spring therefor, locking meansreleasable by the animal for holding the jaws and guard in set position, an anchoring connection for the trap, and delayed action means for. said guard,

comprising means for detachably securing said jaw spring and guard together to apply the combined force of said jaw actuating and guardactuating springs to the jaws, and to arrest the guard when the trap is sprung, said delayed action means being operatively connected with the anchoring connection, and being released by tension of the latter produced by struggles of the animal caught in said jaws. I i

4. A trap having opposed pivotal jaws, a spring for closing said jaws, a pivoted leg embracing guard, a separate spring therefor, locking means releasable by the animal for holding said jaws and guard in set position, an anchoring connection for said trap, and delayed action means for said guard comprising means for detachably connecting said guard actuating spring to the jaw actuating spring when the trap is sprung, nd for arresting the guard, in partially released position,

said delayed action means being operatively connected with said anchoring means to effect the release of said guard by the struggles of the animal, and having portions frictionally engaging the spring to permit the trap in fully set position being transported and moved by means of said anchoring means. l V

5. A trap having opposed pivoted jaws, a spring forclosing said jaws, a pivoted leg embracing guard,a separate spring therefor, locking means releasable by the animal for holding said jaws and guard in set position, an anchoring connection for said trap, and delayed action means for said guard comprising a part extending trans-' versely of the guard and jaw spring and held detachably in frictional engagement therewith, and operatively connected with the anchoring connection, intermediate its ends, a slack portion of said connection being provided between said part and the connection of said anchoring connection with the trap.

6. A trap having opposed pivoted jaws, a spring for closing said jaws, a pivoted leg embracing guard, a separate spring therefor, locking means releasable by the animal for holding said jaws and guard in set position, an anchoring connection for said trap, and a delayed action bar adapted to be detachably interposed between said jaw spring and guard and to be frictionally held between them, said bar being connected to an intermediate portion of said anchoring connection with slack between said intermediate portion of the anchoring'connection and its connection with the trap.

7. A trap having opposed pivoted jaws, a spring for closingisaid jaws, a pivoted leg embracing guard, a separate spring therefor, locking means releasable by the animal for holding said jaws and guard in set position, an anchoring connection for said trap, and a delayed action detent lever pivotally connected with said jaw actuating spring and adapted to releasably engage the guard in the set position of the trap, and means trap, said clip being connected with said anchoring connection at an intermediate point therein providing slack between said point and the connection of said anchoring connection to the trap. 9. A trap having opposed pivoted jaws, a spring for closing said jaws, a pivoted leg embracing guard, a separate spring therefor, locking means releasable by the animal for holding said jaw and guard in set position, an anchoring connection for said trap and delayed action means, comprising a clip detachably embracing and frictionally engaging said jaw actuating spring and said guard in the set position of the trap, said clip being connected to said anchoring connection at an intermediate point thereon with slack between said point and the connection of said anchoring connection with the trap.

JOHN U. LEHN. 

